Member Avatar for RastaToo

The video playback on my Acer Aspire 751 Netbook is poor (choppy, lagging). It is configured with 2GB of RAM and has a integrated graphics card running on Vista Home Basic. I tried to download a newer version of the driver for the Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 500 but the one downloading shows less up to date than what I have. I know this is a piddly little machine but was hoping to be able to watch a YouTube video or stream a movie now and again. I also get the same poor results when connecting o a TV through the VGA port.

Any thoughts on what I could do to improve the graphics capability?

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Building on 's suggestions and 's description, here are a few practical checks and clarifications that haven't been covered and can make a real difference with an Aspire 751's GMA‑500-based video.

First, confirm exactly which driver is installed and the device hardware ID: open Device Manager → Display adapters → Properties → Details → Hardware Ids. Use that ID when looking for a driver on Acer's support page (OEM drivers for that netbook are usually more reliable than generic Intel auto‑updaters). Also update the motherboard/chipset package and BIOS for the model if updates exist—those can change how shared video memory is handled.

Next, isolate whether the problem is GPU acceleration or CPU load. While playing a YouTube/Flash clip, watch Task Manager for processes using high CPU (look for the browser or flashpluginhost). Try toggling Flash hardware acceleration (right‑click a Flash video → Settings → disable/enable hardware acceleration) and test playback in a different, lightweight browser or with YouTube's lower quality settings. For local files, a lightweight player and a downsampled copy (480p) will often play far more smoothly than native HD on this hardware.

A few final practical notes: if BIOS offers DVMT/UMA pre‑alloc settings, raise it (e.g., 64–128MB) only if available—some models lock it. External USB video adapters (DisplayLink) give extra outputs but do not add a true H.264/HD decode engine and usually won’t improve HD playback. If smooth modern streaming is required, a newer device with a modern CPU/GPU is the most reliable fix.

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Member Avatar for techsheaven

How much RAM is allocated to video in the BIOS? This is often listed as aperture size.

Also, I would disable any programs that run in the background.

As far as online video is concerned, you need to lower the video quality or increase your throughput to stop frames from being dropped.

Good Luck

Member Avatar for RastaToo

Thanks for the suggestions. I don't really know how to check the video allocation of RAM but I suspect that may be part of the answer since this model generally came with just 1 gb of RAM...mine has 2 gb so I could see how I might be able to increase that to get better performance and use of the extra 1 gb.

Have closed down any background items for sure and haven't seen better/worse results based on bandwidth.

Member Avatar for techsheaven

You are at the minimum amount of RAM required by Windows 7. I would recommend starting by adding RAM. Onboard video "steals" a bit from the system RAM, this is often called the Aperture size, and is managed in the BIOS. When your system first starts, there is a bunch of stuff that you usually ignore. It will say something like, "To enter setup hit delete," or "... F1." You will have to try to read the info before it disappears, or get the manual.

Once in the BIOS setup, the mouse will not be active. Read the navigation instructions. Usually, the arrow key are used.

Member Avatar for RastaToo

Thanks, I am actually running on Vista Home and I believe that 2 GB RAM is the max configuration for this little netbook (most were configured with only 1 GB). Wondering if perhaps there is an small external graphics card that is plug and play which could be connected via USB when I want to watch video? I have produced a couple of home loan tutorials that I can't watch/demo on this particular machine.

Thanks for your assistance.

Member Avatar for techsheaven

There is such a device, but I doubt you will get any better performance.

Here is what I would try:

Hold the windows key and press R

In the Run box type the following and press ENTER: msconfig

In the Microsoft Configuration Utility do the following:
-On the Startup tab, click Disable All.
-On the Services tab, check the box to hide Microsoft services, then click Disable All.
** Note that this process may disable components of your anti-virus program. If your video can be viewed offline, just don't connect. If it is online, you should determine which services and startup items belong to your anti-virus, and check then so they will not be disabled.
-Click OK

You will be prompted to restart. After the restart, try to play the video and let me know what the result is.

Good Luck

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